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Date: 14 Dec 1985 17:20-EST 
From: Martin.Stacey@H.CS.CMU.EDU
To: bovik@a
Subject: 50/60 Hz Stereo
Message-Id: <503446827/mks@H.CS.CMU.EDU>

My conclusions from looking for stereo equipment that will run on both
60 Hz in the USA and 50 Hz in Europe are as follows:

You don't worry about the voltage until you are in the European country,
when you buy a 220/110 or 240/110 transformer. I haven't any data, but I
get the strong impression that these things are much cheaper in Europe
than in the United States.

The frequency doesn't matter for stereo equipment except when it is used
for timing, so you don't worry about amplifiers, tuners et cetera. The
critical factors for turntables, cassette decks and CD players is whether
or not they have DC motors - if they do then you don't worry about the
frequency. But what you should do is get your stereo store to call the
manufacturers and check specially. Opus One wouldn't do this and thought
that Kenwood equipment wouldn't run on 50 Hz, so I excluded Kenwood.
Better Sound Concepts and the Listening Post happily called for me and
reported that NAD and Luxman (respectively) cassette decks and CD
players would run on 50 Hz. I'm now trying to decide between NAD and
Luxman. I remembered to check that both could be serviced in Britain.